


Butterfly Bandage

by Zakodia



Category: Hades (Video Game 2018)
Genre: Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mutual Pining, No Spoilers, Stitches, Tenderness, tenderly cleaning wounds
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-30
Updated: 2020-10-30
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:41:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,261
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27278158
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zakodia/pseuds/Zakodia
Summary: "What a match, I'm half doomed and you're semi sweet"Thanatos finds Zagreus bleeding....again, but this time he decides to take a different approach(The good old "homoerotically bandaging my friends wound while fondly calling them an idiot" trope)
Relationships: Thanatos/Zagreus (Hades Video Game)
Comments: 5
Kudos: 208





	Butterfly Bandage

“Ow!” Zagreus yelled as he quickly put his hand over his mouth. Still his voice echoed through the chamber in Elysium and he could see shades giving him a rude look for disturbing their eternal peace. 

“Stay still,” Thanatos said beside him through gritted teeth.

It took everything in Zagreus not to whimper as Thanatos pierced his skin again. He promised this would help but Zagreus failed to see how it wasn’t just making everything worse. 

“You’re too reckless out here Zagreus” Thanatos chided. 

Zagreus was too focused on the pain to reply with a retort.

“You need to learn how to keep a distance from these wretches”

Zagreus let out a hissed breath, “you’re starting to sound like Hypnos”

This brought a brief smile across Than’s face as he continued his work. 

“There, I’ve finished”

* * *

Not 30 minutes earlier, Thanatos had found Zagreus bleeding out in the Elysium grass, grazed by a brightsword. He was weak, but not close enough to death, close enough to save. It was time for Thanatos to use his other skills.

Zagreus' eyes brightened when he heard the familiar bell toll, if only it had come five minutes earlier. He tried to reach out as Thanatos hovered above him.    
  


“Than, it’s great to see you” he croaked out before coughing his red spittle into the grass. “I assume you’ve come to take me?”

“ _ Tsch _ stay down, I’ve come to save you”

Zagreus coughed again, but stayed silent, this had to be a hallucination of his bloodless mind. A way to make his trip easier, any second now Than would lift him up and he would be surfacing out of the Styx. 

Instead he got Than’s cold hand on his shoulder shaking slightly. He was so focused on his imagination he didn’t hear Than’s voice. 

“Zagreus please, Zagreus” Thanatos said insistently 

He still wasn’t sure this was all real but he decided to just play along with whatever happened.

“I’m here Than, I’m here” Zagreus smiled looking into Than’s concerned face, he really did care didn’t he? Well hallucination Thanatos cared at least. 

“Zagreus this is important, do you trust me?”

That woke Zagreus up a little bit, what was Than planning? 

“Yes, of course I trust you Thanatos, what reason would I have to not”

Thanatos shook his head, now that Zagreus was staring, he seemed to be paler than usual as well.

“I—can save you Zagreus, save this escape attempt, but it's not going to be pleasant” he paused for a moment, “I can also let you die, but it will also be long and unpleasant” he grimaced “the choice is yours Zagreus” 

Zagreus felt his blood burn again, not just from his wound, but from being given a second chance, he was sure this life was over, here in this glade, but now Thanatos of all gods was offering to save him. 

“Save me” Zagreus replied, propping himself up to meet Thanatos in the air.

He thought he saw a smile pass across Than’s face, but it could have been another hallucination. 

“Don’t thank me until it’s over” Thanatos replied, messing with his cloak, “now lie back down so I can work” he said sternly

Zagreus followed the command as Thanatos sat in the grass next to him preparing the needle and string that somehow had appeared from his cloak. 

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you about this” Thanatos said in a smooth voice

* * *

  
  
  


“There I’ve finished”

Zagreus huffed out the breath he had been holding in. He looked down to see his wound no longer bleeding and neatly closed up with string

“You’re definitely not a liar Thanatos, what did you do to me?”

Thanatos floated closer to Zagreus’ head before settling down again, stretching his legs in the grass. This was the most relaxed Zagreus had seen him since he had started trying to escape. Maybe it was the smugness that he had helped Zagreus once again. 

“Stitches Zagreus, stitches” he replied flatly 

“Stitches?” Zagreus questioned

Thanatos just shook his head, he had no idea how the kid had made it this far. Maybe it was his father, maybe it was those dazzling two colored eyes, or the flashy smile or the stunning physi-

He was brought back to reality by Zagreus’ warm hand on top of his in the grass, or maybe it was that joyful laugh he was directing towards Thanatos at the moment.

“Lost you there for a second Than” Zagreus smiled at him. It almost washed away the anger Thanatos had felt finding Zagreus bleeding out again, but not quite, not yet. 

“Well I’m back”

“Where did you learn to do this?” Zagreus gestured to his wound, and Thanatos remembered he had never found Zagreus in saveable state before, he usually just did his final duty, and how it pained him every time. 

He paused for a moment, he did not stop to consider how much of himself he was revealing when he did this act, but now the truth was coming out.

He picked up his scythe and turned it over in his hands.

“When it came time to train for my station, I was young, willful, and eager to prove myself. I overestimated my strength, but the scythe does not allow for mistakes and neither does the sword as you well know. So I trained too hard and too long, injuring myself until I nearly ended in the Styx. Achilles found me collapsed in the training room, and Nyx managed to heal me, but I was embarrassed I had allowed it to happen. Achilles recognized my pride and offered to show me the ways of medicine so that I would never have to ask for help again. It is a skill I rarely need anymore but I am glad it was of service to you” 

Zagreus stayed silent as Thanatos finished, he felt an overwhelming need to give the other god a hug, but instead threaded his fingers through Than’s in the grass. 

“Well I for one am grateful you learned” 

Than felt his face burning under the heat of Zagreus’ smile, and turned away. His feelings for Zagreus had always been complicated, he had pushed them away for gods knew how long. But now a new urgency had emerged with Zagreus’ plans and although Thanatos knew he could not dissuade him, perhaps his acts of kindness would show Zagreus how he really felt. He felt the tug of another soul calling him back to work and he knew Zagreus should continue. 

“Than?” Zagreus said softly, squeezing Thanatos’ hand, the heat bringing him back to the glade from his floating thoughts.

He put his hand on Zagreus’ warm cheek and kissed him on the forehead, “Keep going” he whispered softly in Zag’s ear. Then as soon as he came he was gone in a poof of green smoke.

“Than—!” Zagreus sighed and pouted, “Blood and darkness” he muttered under his breath as he carefully got to his feet. He was glad to be seeing Thanatos more often, and for his help, but the teleporting never got less annoying. Maybe he would see him back at the House and give him the Ambrosia he had been saving for him finally. It was little thanks for all Than had done for him, these new “stitches” included, but it was all Zagreus had. 

With a new resolve and heat burning within Zagreus faced the golden door leading to the next chamber. 

“Gotta keep going” he said to himself as he readied his blade for whatever came next. 

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed it and feel free to leave a comment or kudos!
> 
> You can find me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/saucykaiju) or on [Tumblr](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/loveaintforkeeping)!


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